Feathers in the Meadow
by Moonlight Shadow4
Summary: Squall.Rinoa. Following the themes from the livejournal community 30 kisses. All genre, rating, and length. Always Squall & Rinoa.
1. I Promise

**A/N: **I've undertaken writing for the Live Journal community 30 kisses, and for this I have adopted the pairing of Squall and Rinoa. While the themes don't have to be done in order, all 30 will get done. Well...first one up.

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**I Promise...**

_Theme #6: The Space Between Dream and Reality _

**_Summary:_** Squall had promised to meet her in the meadow, but Rinoa couldn't find him.

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"He was supposed to be right behind me..." Rinoa whispered, turning around. The numbing breeze threw her hair into disarray. "But...he's not..."

_I'll be waiting..._

Squall had promised to meet her in the meadow, but Rinoa couldn't find it. She couldn't find him. They were gone...

_Why...?_

"Squall...?" she called softly. Her voice rang, lonesome, as she walked slowly over the barren earth. "Where are you...?"

_I'll be waiting for you, so..._

She glanced around frantically, but only derelict landscape and shadowy skies greeted her sight. "Squall! Squall!" The grayness absorbed her cries, unfeeling and uncaring.

_...if you come here..._

Right now, Rinoa didn't care if she was stuck here in this strange world between her reality and Ultimecia's, she wouldn't leave until she found him. _It looks so sad,_ she thought, heart growing heavy with each step that she hadn't found Squall; that she was alone except for the warmth of her aura. _But...this is where he said we'd meet..._

_I'll find you..._

She reached her hand up and gripped onto her necklace, holding the two rings suspended there like they were her last hope. Running her forefinger over the engraving on the large ring, Rinoa reflected on Squall's explanation of the creature – Griever, a lion, the symbol for all that he was – quiet prowess, incredible power, unbridled pride and courage. Squall hadn't given up on her, and she wouldn't give up on him now.

_I promise..._

Her footfalls had become weary, and yet her heart held steadfastly to the two words he had sworn to her before they underwent Time Compression. _'I promise..._' "I promise I won't give up on you either, Squall... I promise I'll find you..." She closed her eyes, envisioning his face. _You promised me, Squall...you wouldn't break your word. _The warmth of tears teased softly on her lashes. _You promised..._

As another breeze picked up again, Rinoa felt something pull at her, like a deep longing – a yearning that she knew full well. Pushing her untamed hair from her face with a hand, she opened her eyes and it was then she saw him, lying there as if simply resting peacefully...only Rinoa knew Squall never slept peacefully.

Taking a few measured strides, begging her body to be strong like Griever, she knelt down beside his quiescent body. Rinoa ran her hand through his long bangs. "Squall..." His name was no more than a whisper, a breath passing between her lips. Her palm paused on his cheek, feeling the slight heat that still lingered.

Squall's head lolled to the side quietly; the instinct that had called her to him was fading. Rinoa's eyes widened. _No..._ The realization sank in as the cool, prideful aura that had always surrounded him since they'd met started to die away.

Rinoa lifted him into her arms, cradling his torso to hers. She looked at him pleadingly, heart beginning to pound harshly in her ears. _Squall..._ She touched a hand to his forehead, tenderly running her hand through his hair again.

_You promised you'd be here, Squall..._ Rinoa gazed down at his chest. The Griever crest twinkled dimly in the murky twilight from its heavy chain. She blinked back the tears as they mounted again. _Squall...this isn't how you keep a promise... You can't leave...not now, you can't..._

Squall's thin lips remained pursed while his life-aura grew shallow and wispy about hers.

_You can't... You can't!_ Rinoa clutched him tightly to her, finally releasing the hot tears onto his white shirt when she buried her face deeply into his chest. After all they'd been through, this was how their tale was going to end – sad, and before it had really begun?

_Squall, please, you can't... _

His aura died away.

_I love you..._

Rinoa sobbed, feeling her young sorceress powers pulse hotly through her veins, but paying them no heed. Her eyes shot open as her body grew warm, and beautiful light flooded from where she sat, cradling Squall's body. From the light, the storm-clouded heavens parted for the crystalline blue sky above and the desolate earth was renewed with life by the bright flowers dotting the swaying grasses that grew once more.

The meadow continued to flourish around her, the breeze whipping petals about.

She looked around in wonder.

Rinoa gazed at Squall again; a gentle tendril of cool energy kissed her own as his cobalt eyes opened slightly and met her marveling ones, speaking the words without saying them at all: _I love you, too..._


	2. His Eyes

**A/N: **I'm a little nerve-wracked for this one, so I hope you enjoy it.

**Dedication: **To the three most influential people in my life – Scott, Tori, and Eli. If it weren't for you three, I don't know how my life would have gone.

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**His Eyes**

_Theme #15: Perfect Blue_

**_Summary: _**The eyes are the window to the soul...

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Cold. Calm. Stoic.

For so long, his eyes had held onto the one thing he knew he could always depend on – his pain. Without it, he would be swallowed by his own depression. He had trained himself to keep his hopes low, so the disappointments wouldn't hurt as much. It hadn't been his intention for his eyes to become so distant-looking; yet, without his noticing, they had.

Squall had found nothing to make his gaze any less calculatingly intense. Whatever the other students or members of Garden thought of him had never really been a concern of his. As long as his true feelings were never reflected there, Squall could have cared less.

Unnerving. Penetrating. Depthless.

His gazes were always enigmatic – always hiding his bleeding soul with irises of icy periwinkle. His silent pleading was his own. It was his cross to bear. Squall would not allow another soul into his mind.

The memories, while faint, were what fueled his pain – his pride and courage.

Pride and courage...

Squall had never really thought of himself having these qualities – as these were the traits of a hero, and that he never believed he was; rather, it was a disregard of fear. Death, the ultimate fear of many, would have been embraced by him. To Squall, it was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened. As long as he saw it as a step in the life process, detached from any sentiment, there would only be relief.

Mysterious. Wondrous. Whimsical.

Squall had never been entranced as a much as he was the night he met _her_. His life had been regimented, structured, his spirit sullen and untrusting; she turned it into a free, passionate life in a soul now surer and amiable. And it all started with gazing at the same shooting star that split the pitch heavens with minute teardrops of light; and then their eyes met – his cool and hers warm.

Alluring. Curious. Rare.

Squall had never seen anyone with eyes like hers before and he found he couldn't look away. Actually, the desire to break their locked gaze never passed through his mind as the other dancers whirled around them.

He tried to look impassive when she asked him to dance, yet there was something there, something more that willing let himself be dragged onto the dance floor. It hadn't been until he looked into her soft brown eyes, holding her slender hand in his, that he allowed himself the small indulgence of sharing a waltz with her.

Then, when they froze as the celebratory fireworks trilled high into the dark sky and burst, Squall felt something he had never experienced before – a sense of absolute contentment.

But when their eyes met again, and she excused herself from him with a light smile, he felt an empty kind of longing in his heart.

It had confused him for a while after; and since that night, he had sensed the coldness in his eyes wane considerably. All he could do was ponder on her kindly eyes, and actually believe that the eyes were the windows to the soul – as time pressed onward, and they grew closer with their gazes meeting often, Squall knew it to be true.

It wasn't until years later, after all the heroic trials, the acts of compassion; the renewed value of life being more than just what other would say after he died, and the realized romantic destiny as a sorceress' knight that he finally asked Rinoa why that night at the SeeD Officers Ball she had chose him – why had he been her partner of choice?

She laughed, that tinkling melodious laugh he'd grown to hold so dear as she smiled warmly at him. "Because, Squall, your eyes have always been the perfect shade of blue."


	3. Simplicity

**A/N:** Not much to say about this, except it's been a while, but I'm trying to get back into the swing of writing. I really do miss it.

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**Simplicity**

_Theme #29: The Sound of Waves_

**_Summary: _**Sometimes the most meaningful things are just that simple.

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The celebratory banquet was still in full swing, and the joviality had spread down into the Quad. Even though he was the Commander of Garden, Squall just continued to stand on the balcony, arms wrapped around Rinoa in an attempt to shield her from the cool breeze that blew over the sea as he had for the past hour and a half, rather than join in the more boisterous fun his other friends were engaged in.

Squall looked back every once-in-a-while with a slight smile to see what kind of trouble his friends were getting into. Currently, Irvine was chasing Selphie around the large mess hall, trying to get both his hat back – which Selphie wore proudly on her head – and the hair tie for his long hair. Squall shook his head and looked back to the night sky.

Rinoa shifted in his arms and he peered down at her quizzically.

She must have sensed his gaze because before he had a chance to speak, Rinoa turned her head to look up at him and say, with a grin, "It's just so..._romantic_ up here."

Squall shrugged, wrapping his arms tighter around her waist as he pulled her back closer to his chest. "...I guess..."

She clicked her tongue, and he could almost hear her roll her eyes. "Do you always have to be so...you?"

"Who else would I be?" he chuckled softly. "Don't get offended, Rinoa, I just don't have a single romantic bone in my body."

"Mm-hm..." It was obvious that she didn't believe him.

"I don't."

"You told me you couldn't dance, didn't you?"

"Yeah. So?"

"So..." Rinoa nudged his side with her elbow, "I think you have one at least."

Squall shook his head. "Whatever."

Garden touched down with surprising gentleness in its rightful crater only a stone's throw away from the small town of Balamb. From where they were standing, Squall could see the Fire Cavern and a small coppice of trees. A fleeting thought of remembrance came to him as he recalled obtaining Ifrit as a GF before he blinked in surprise as Rinoa pulled away from him and grabbed one of his hands.

Before he could ask, Rinoa simply murmured conspiringly, "I want to go down to the beach."

"Huh?" he managed out, sounding and looking quite intelligent as she dragged him haphazardly through the mess hall. Squall was having a slight bout of déjà vu from the first time they met and she had dragged him onto the dance floor. But instead of stopping in the middle of the crowd, she sailed out of the room with him and lead him out into the corridor. "The beach? Why do you want to go to the beach?"

"Because, silly," she laughed, brown eyes twinkling, "I want to hear the waves crash on the shoreline."

Squall quirked an eyebrow. "In case you hadn't noticed, Garden had been flying over the ocean for most of the evening." He shook his head as they made their way out of the front gate. "I thought you'd seen enough of the water."

"Well, Mr. I-Don't-Have-a-Romantic-Bone-in-My-Body, hearing the waves breaking on the shore is something magical...besides...it's kinda special to me..." Rinoa's voice softened as they made their way out of Balamb Garden.

They followed along the roadside for a bit, now walking comfortably hand-in-hand, before stepping completely away and venturing into the grass. It was fortunate that no monsters attacked them; while Squall had his gunblade with him, he wasn't feeling particularly inclined to using it right now. The night was quiet, still, bathed lightly in the glow from Balamb, and, in his eyes, perfect. After all the fighting against Galbadia, against Seifer, and the recent victory over Ultimecia, all the young Commander wanted was to just let his world fall into a kind of serenity.

He felt Rinoa squeeze his hand as their feet finally reached the sandy shoreline. Squall looked to her again, watching as the breeze, smelling of sea salt and of the town of Balamb, teased through her hair. "So...why is the seashore so special to you?"

Rinoa peered out into the distance, where the dark sky brushed against the equal blackness of the ocean and the shadows melted together in some kind of quiet harmony. "It's probably because my mother used to take me out to the shore...let me play with the sand...and ever since I can remember, I've always loved the sound of the ocean."

Squall nodded. "I kind of know what you mean. I used to sneak out of Garden – "

"What?" She glanced at him, a teasing smile on her face. "Squall Leonhart used to sneak out? Someone alert the Timber Maniacs!"

He rolled his eyes. "I just liked to come out here and think. I guess because Ellone used to walk me down to the beach when we still lived in the orphanage with Matron I mean, I probably I did it more when I first got to Garden, and after a while, I only came out when time allowed. So...it's been a while since I've come to actually admire it, instead training on it."

Rinoa nodded in understanding. "No, I get how you feel. It was just such a constant, steady sound – kind of like a heartbeat and...after my mother died, I used to whisper a single wish over the water. Like it would carry over the waves or something..."

"Not to be alone again..." Squall mumbled to himself, eyes fixed on the endless stretch of water.

Rinoa tilted her head. "Yeah... How did you – ?"

"Heh." He looked down to the tide lapping at the toe of his boots and grimaced. "Because I used to say the same thing. It always felt like there was something missing."

Smiling softly to him, Rinoa squeezed Squall's hand. "We're not any more."

Squall nodded, looking to her. "You're right. We're not."

Then, he leaned down to gently kiss her and she kissed him in return. As his eyes slid closed, and he held Rinoa closer, Squall forgot that he was anything else besides a boy kissing the girl he loved with the waves crashing softly in his ears and never feeling more complete.


	4. Meanings

**A/N: **I asked my mom and my best friend Eli (tetsaiga-girl) for which theme I should next. They each chose different ones, but their themes are interlinked. So, it should be one right after the other. One note though: I'm not exactly running in any kind of order – I may have a short from the beginning of the game, the next at the end, and another from the post-idea. Anyway... Enjoy!

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**Meanings**

_Theme #11: Gardenia _

**_Summary: _**Sometimes, everything can be said without ever saying a word.

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Zell Dincht absently brushed imaginary dust away from his pants with a hand before turning the knob of the door in front of him. He shut it quietly behind himself and started up the wood stairs. 

The little passage was kind of dark at first, but as Zell climbed higher, it grew lighter. As he neared the top floor, he could see the simple wooden guard rail and the soft sunshine that wove between the slender railings. The air was lightly scented with flowers already, giving Zell a warm feeling inside, but nonetheless, he held onto the bouquet of white flowers in his right hand with a resolute, but gentle, touch.

The top floor had changed a little since the first time he'd visited this place. It was mainly just new knickknacks and some furniture, and a large blue screen was set up to divide this part of the floor – which was normally just one large, open room – into, presumably, the sitting area and a bedroom.

Grinning to himself, Zell spotted the dozing figure of his friend in a chair; his elbow resting on his knee, and his cheek supported by his palm while the rest of his body slumped into the brown high-back. Zell had figured early afternoon would be the best time to come and visit – or, really, he was the representative sent by the rest of the gang to check up on the pair – but Squall had proved him wrong.

Zell stared at the uncharacteristically asleep Squall, not quite sure how to wake him up, before going around the side of him and gently rapping on his friend's head with his gloved knuckles. "Yo, Squall – you in there?"

With a rather loud sniff, Squall batted at Zell's hand with his own free one. He turned bleary blue eyes onto his blond-haired friend, trying to get his eyes to focus; Zell was just trying not to laugh. Dropping both elbows onto his knees, he ran a fist over his eyes, attempting to clean the sleep away, mumbling, "Yeah, I'm here. What do you need?"

Chuckling, Zell handed the flowers to Squall.

Looking at them quizzically, a slow smirk curled over Squall's lips. "Thanks, Zell, but I think its kind of late for a first date." He laughed lightly as his friend just about launched them at his head.

"That's not even funny, Squall," muttered Zell, flaring bright red. "That's from Selphie, Irvine, Quistis, and everyone else – including yours truly." The embarrassed blush left his cheeks as he crossed one foot behind the other and stretched his arms above his head.

Squall looked at the flowers, running a finger over the pure white petals. "Gardenias... They're...they're nice, Zell..."

"Yeah, I know. Gardenias apparently mean sweetness and joy...and something else." He scratched behind his ear with a knuckle. "Quistis told me, but I kinda forgot. We figured you could give them to Rinoa. How's she doing, anyway?"

"She's doing all right. Sleeps a lot, eats the weirdest things, and I generally just try get some sleep myself when I can."

"Worrying a lot?" Squall gave a short nod while Zell just laughed, shaking his head. "Man, you worry enough for the entire nation of Galbadia."

"...She's given me a reason to care, which has also given me a reason to worry more."

"Yeah, well, we both know you wouldn't have it any other way." Zell watched as Squall moved the flowers onto the table, picked up the book that had been lying in his lap that Zell just noticed, and closed it. As it was set beside the bouquet of gardenias, he got a good look at the title. "A baby book?"

Squall's hand froze over the soft cover of the book and replied in a thin voice, "Yes. A baby book, Zell."

Laughter was becoming much harder for the martial artist to contain, but he managed to do so and slap a grin on his face instead. "You and Rinoa have any ideas yet?"

Shrugging, Squall moved from his chair. "Not sure. It depends on if it's a boy or a girl."

"What? You don't know yet?" asked Zell. "I thought the doctor told you."

"Rinoa wanted to keep it a surprise, but I have a feeling it's a girl." Squall ran a hand through his brown hair – a bit longer since Zell had last seen him about a month or so ago.

Zell nodded. "Still can't believe you're going to be a dad."

"Me either."

There was a bit of silence for a moment, not exactly awkward or unwelcoming, simply present.

The sunlight continued to filter through the windows, and Zell rather smiled at the simplicity and quietness of the room. "Must be nice, living here in a Winhill. I don't think a pregnant woman would find a lot of comfort at Garden."

Squall shook his head, a slight smile tugging on his lips. "I don't think so either." He paced over to one of the windows and peered down; he could see Winhill's town square from here. "It's nice... It's quiet."

Zell chuckled again. "At least you can do your paperwork here and keep an eye on Rinoa."

Nodding, the other man replied, "That I can."

The silence settled in again, but Zell knew Squall well enough to have an idea what he was thinking; it was peaceful, it was away from the battles he had to face, but most of all it was calm and rather maternal. It made sense, after all – this was Raine's home, after all. He was her only living relative, and he knew Rinoa liked it here, so it did make a good place for Squall to unwind and kind of reprogram himself to become human.

Zell thought that was pretty accurate; reading Squall, sometimes, was like reading one of Quistis' tutorial's on Junctioning – straight forward, to the point, but occasionally, something unexpectedly interesting would pop up. And after being his friend for so many years – about seven now – Zell was pretty good at understanding the lone gunblade specialist.

Well, _former_ lone gunblade specialist. He was married with a child on the way, after all.

With a smile, Zell turned and clapped a hand on Squall's back. "Hey, it was nice seeing you. I'll let the others know you two haven't just disappeared from the face of the planet. Give Rinoa my best."

Squall nodded. "Yeah, you, too. See ya, Zell."

Waving as he left, Zell ambled back to the staircase and down again.

Squall watched the peacefulness of Winhill for a minute longer before straightening up and going to retrieve the gardenias. He looked at the petals thoughtfully as he slipped around the screen and into the bedroom where Rinoa slept. Sitting down beside her, facing her back, he ran his palm over her stomach; the baby would be born very soon, and with Rinoa's petite size, she was doubly large.

Allowing himself one of those completely defenseless moments, he smiled and leaned over to kiss his wife just below her earlobe. Squall reached over to set the white gardenias on the table, but paused to brush the flowers over Rinoa's sleeping form before he did so.

Squall really knew he should put the flowers in water, but decided it could wait. Rinoa gave a soft exhale and sleepily reached up to grab his retreating hand, wrapping his arm around her middle. Obliging, Squall laid his palm flat, running a thumb gently over her flesh where her shirt had ridden up slightly. He felt the unborn babe kick beneath his hand, and Squall couldn't help the wonderment that filled him.

And then he remembered that gardenias also meant "secret, untold love."


	5. Faith

**A/N: **Here's the second shot, for Eli – like I said, linked to the previous one. (Small note: Faith is my favorite girls' name).

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**Faith**

_Theme #22: Cradle_

**_Summary:_** Rinoa always said Squall needed a little bit of faith.

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Peering over the edge of the cradle, Squall's eyes rested gently on the dark haired baby that lay swaddled in a pastel pink blanket from the Deling City Hospital. It amazed him that this child had taken some many hours of labor, and so much physical strain on her mother; Rinoa giving birth made being a SeeD look easy. But what left him in absolute wonderment was the fact that he had helped in creating this life – a little bit of him and a little of her.

He had hoped to name their daughter Raine after his mother; even though he hadn't known her directly, it nagged at his heart that he didn't have any other connection to her except what he saw in the dream world. But Rinoa had stubbornly insisted on a single name, so Squall had finally given in. He had told her that he didn't understand why she had to be so mulish about it – it wasn't as if she had someone close to her with that name – but she had simply looked up at him and told him he'd understand it later.

Squall tentatively reached out and passed a calloused hand tenderly over his slumbering daughter's head. The baby smacked her lips as she made cooing noises, but not waking up. Squall felt a smile slip over his mouth as the baby did the same.

"Good morning, Faith," he said softly, voice breaking into the comfortable quiet of the darkened room, as the curtains were drawn closed. He leaned over the railing and placed a loving kiss on Faith's forehead, closing his eyes as he let his lips linger there.

Arms circled around his middle from behind and with a kiss to the back of his shoulder, a whispered, "Good morning, Squall," reached his ears.

Squall opened his eyes, carefully straightening up and turning to face his wife. He dipped his head, his eyes meeting her dark ones. "You should still be resting."

Standing on her toes, Rinoa's lips met his for a light kiss, letting it last a few moments before dropping back onto her heels. She gave a short, quiet laugh, smiling at him. "I'm fine now, Squall, really. You worry too much."

A long pause ensued with only the pleasant chirping of the birds that had made their nest in one of the rain gutters. He looked to the side. "...I just don't want something to happen to you. Faith was only born three days ago."

A warm hand slid up his cheek, palm soft, and turned his face to meet hers. Rinoa's gaze met his steadily. "Squall, I'm all right. But...thank you. Later on I'll go take another nap. But I wanted to see you...and...hug you." She smiled lightly. "It's been kind of hard to do with a big ol' belly in the way, you know?"

Squall chuckled at her ever-present innocence. He nodded before wrapping his arms around Rinoa, rather around her shoulders and holding her close. The scent of her hair tickled his nose – roses and vanilla – and he closed his eyes, laying a cheek on the top of her head.

Rinoa smiled to herself. Kissing his chest once and making herself comfortable there, she glanced over to their slumbering daughter. "Squall?"

"Mm?"

"Remember when Irvine and Zell were trying to put the cradle together?"

Thinking back for a moment, Squall's form shook with silent laughter. "Yeah, I remember. Screws were littered all over the floor...parts were sitting around them..."

"And you put it together in about half an hour," giggled Rinoa.

Squall opened his eyes and gave somewhat of a nod. The couple stood there in the baby's room, listening to the gentle sounds of early day. The baby remained fast asleep – Squall thought she looked a lot like her mother then.

Looking up, Rinoa followed her husband's gaze with her eyes before smiling up at him. "Squall, she looks like you, too." She moved out of their warm embrace – Squall internally bemoaning the loss of her warmth – and touched a hand to the white guard bar on the cradle.

He let his gaze follow her as he moved to the wall and leaned against it quietly.

A warm smile blossomed anew on her pretty lips, the tenderness reaching her eyes as her free hand touched her child's face. "See, here – she has your nose and your forehead..." Rinoa laughed to herself, quietly saying, "And she's just as cute as you are when you're sleeping."

"...Rinoa...?"

She turned slightly, half facing him. The soft glow of the morning light created a golden halo about her dark hair and played a similar aura about her form. "Yes, Squall?"

It was a feeling of absolute contentment – belonging – and protectiveness – love – that passed through him. So small, so simple – what were people really? Something that was born and would die everyday, something not constant, something Squall couldn't depend on.

At least that was how he used to feel. It wasn't as if the natural cycle of life had suddenly ceased, and life was still far from rosy, but seeing Rinoa and Faith... They gave him a reason to keep going, a reason for living.

They gave him something to believe in.

Squall watched his wife as she tipped her head in wonder, asking with a quirk of the corners of her lips, "Are you getting lost in your thoughts again?"

Keeping his eyes on her for a moment, he chuckled once, closing his eyes and shaking his head. "Nothing. I just got it."


	6. Not a Cold

**A/N:** It's been a while since I've written something so, rather than lose my claim; here is my latest theme update. And, by the way, this isn't following the mini-storyline I had with "Meanings" and "Faith." Enjoy!

**Dedication: **To my wonderful, wonderful boyfriend Zach who is sick today...and this made me think of him.

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**Not a Cold**

_Theme #18: "Say Ahh..."_

**_Summary: _**Men can be such babies when they're sick.

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"I'm not putting that in my mouth." 

"You'll feel better if you do."

"I'm not going to do it."

"Squall, quit being so stubborn."

"Hmph." Squall turned his head to the side, away from the thermometer and the arsenal of other medicines Rinoa had close at hand. "I'm not sick," he stated decisively, crossing his arms over his chest, "so I don't need any of this crap."

Rinoa straightened from being bent at the waist and looked him over. With arms crossed, facing the other way, and the resolutely obstinate glint in his blue eyes, Squall looked more like a small child than the commander of Garden. She let out a light sigh, shaking her head. "Oh really? So you call all this coughing, sniffling, sneezing, and various other icky gunk..._what_, exactly? Nose nectar?"

He narrowed his eyes at her as she lazily smiled at him when he gave a particularly juicy-sounding snort. "No, I call it a temporary malfunction within my body, which doesn't seem to want to listen to me," he mumbled to himself, "that is being induced by various other assailants contrary to my natural balance and disposition to be hale."

"...You're sick," came Rinoa's simplified reply.

"I am _not_ sick!" returned Squall before giving a loud, deep throated cough. "I just have...enemy operatives in my body... The white blood cells will take care of it, Rinoa."

"Squall...!" The dark-haired sorceress couldn't resist the temptation any longer to roll her eyes at his juvenile stubbornness and indulged in the action. "You can't solve everything using SeeD logic – using a gunblade!"

"Sure I can." His gaze met hers. "Watch me."

Running splayed fingers through her hair, she gave him a withering look. "You're enjoying torturing me this way, aren't you?" A hint of a smile passed over Squall's lips. "I thought so. Now, come _on_, and let me take your temperature," she commanded, making a slight lunge at him.

Squall moved his head and the thermometer passed harmlessly by him; nothing was getting into his mouth unwarranted. "Well...that was pointless."

She glared at him as he continued to sit there on the couch, nonchalant. "Thank you, Captain Obvious." She paced for a minute, toying with various ideas as she tapped the thermometer against her palm. A few minutes later, she glanced over at Squall – he was nodding off.

Rinoa shook her head again until a simply _capital_ idea suddenly presented itself in her head and an impish grin spread over her face. _Squall won't even know what hit him... Well, serves him right for not being a good little boy and letting me check his temperature... _Her eyes flickered to one of the bottles of medicine Doctor Kadowaki had strongly suggested Squall might take. _He's obviously sick so he's going to take his medicine – like it or not._

The unexpected weight and warmth of Rinoa's body dropping onto his pulled Squall straight out of his half-lucid state. He leaned his head back slightly to survey her better. "Um...hello..."

She smiled wickedly at him in return, showing no teeth, but simply draping her arms over his shoulders and clasping her hands behind his neck.

Squall's heart gave a solid thud as Rinoa adjusted her weight, straddling his waist and pushing him back into the large leather armchair with a single delicate hand, following through with her actions. Her eyes drifted closed and Squall could feel the heat from her lips as they grew closer to his. His body grew heavy with anticipation for such a rather sensual kiss that his eyelids fell to half-mast while he leaned up slightly to meet her, knowing he'd be unable to take the suspense that long.

"Hm," was the lips-half-quirked expostulation as Rinoa's mouth dropped to Squall's.

The kiss started out soft, tender like always, before the growing want of further orifice contact lead to the more intimate kiss – exactly what Rinoa had been hoping for. It only took one quick slip of her tongue and one involuntary swallow on Squall's part before they broke and he gave her the most reproving look he could muster, absolutely indignant.

"_That_ was dirty, Rinoa," spluttered Squall, jaw nearly hanging open in disbelief. He narrowed his eyes at her as she laughed superiorly at him. "You slipped _cherry cough syrup_ into my mouth during a _kiss!"_

At his hissing words, Rinoa couldn't help the mental image of a small kitten getting doused in water and voicing its complaints, which didn't help quell her giggling in the slightest. She beamed at him, quite pleased with her own display of subterfuge. "Approach target cautiously, being as inconspicuous as possible... Wasn't it something like that that you said when you explained why you danced so well?" Slipping off his lap, she wiped her palms together before lightly slapping her thighs. "Tell your white blood cells," she straightened up and gave the SeeD salute, "mission accomplished."


	7. Sweet Tooth

**A/N:** I know I still have yet to do anything more on _Inuyasha_-related fan fiction, but FF8 fan fiction has been where my heart is recently (besides my original works). Anyway, _I do not have the __**technical**__ claim on __**SquallxRinoa**__ but I'm going to keep using the themes as prompts._ I figure this room is the same room where Rinoa 'tricked' Squall into taking some medicine in "Not a Cold". Also, Ashbear's story "Dancing in Time" is a wonderful fic here on FF-dot-NET that I recommend and there some allusions to the set-up of that story here. Enjoy!

**Dedication:** To a good friend of mine, Adam (A.K.A. Ads or FactionFighter on dA), who seems to greatly enjoy my fan fiction and is doing a comic version of "Not a Cold" on deviantART.

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**Sweet Tooth**

_Theme #23: Candy_

_**Summary:**_ Who knew Squall had such a sweet tooth?

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"...so then Cid had me collate some papers and dial a phone call to Edea. Now that she's restoring the orphanage for the kids under five who can't go to Garden yet, she has been working with the White SeeD and Cid hasn't had the chance to see her. He missed her so much and when I asked him why he didn't call her before asking me today, he told me he didn't know how to use that new cell phone Quistis bought for him! Isn't that funny, Squall?"

Rinoa typed a little more and paused when she hadn't heard some form of response. "...Squall?"

Turning in her chair slightly, the young sorceress glanced back at her knight from where she sat at his desk. As commander of Garden, he'd been allotted a large room to himself, which was going to be made into a large suite, according to Xu and Cid, and both of whom had made Rinoa promise to keep it a secret. Still, Squall was practically engulfed by the couch cushions with his arms spread out and his head just poking above the beige fabric as the back continued to suck him in.

Squall, on the other hand, seemed to be oblivious to his plight – his eyes were trained to Rinoa's left.

Curious, Rinoa pivoted her gaze from her knight, to the e-mail she had been writing to Watts and Zone that continued to glow on the laptop screen, and then to where Squall was staring.

A round jar filled with salt water taffy.

Rinoa jockeyed her glance between Squall and the taffy. She'd bought the candy earlier in the day from a traveling vendor in Balamb and had been munching on pieces now and then as she had been working – she had recently become a personal assistant to Cid so she could stay close to her friends and Squall without necessarily having to enroll as a student. (After she had taught the headmaster how to use his cell phone correctly, she had rewarded him with a blue raspberry piece of said candy and he had taken it greedily like an eager little boy).

Rinoa cocked her head to the side slightly, watching Squall questioningly.

_He doesn't seem to have noticed me staring at him..._ She giggled quietly.

She ended up having to press a hand to her mouth to muffle her laughter as the elite SeeD, gunblade specialist, and commander of Garden licked his lips. His eyes were bright and his whole body remained tensed like a lion stalking its prey, waiting for the right moment to strike.

_This is too priceless..._ Rinoa glimpsed back to the desk and found a copy of _Garden Rules and Regulations: Third Edition, Unabridged_ near the top right corner, grabbed it, and promptly dropped it to the floor.

A satisfying smack echoed throughout the room and Squall jumped so far that when he came back down, he got tangled up in the dowdy cushions – one boot-clad foot stuck out to the side and a leather-gloved hand reached up in the air. "Mmgwuah!" he cried in confusion and Rinoa toppled out of the rolling chair, holding her sides and laughing loudly. "Rinoa..." she heard him growl, but from beneath the cushions, it sounded more like, "Wingnoa..."

Wiping mirthful tears from her cheeks, Rinoa rolled onto her knees and rose. "Yes, Squall?"

"Cang oo et me up?"

Rinoa snickered. "Yes, I can get you up." She leaned over, grabbed his hand as it started to sink beneath the surface of his cushiony, comfort furniture prison. With a good yank, the young sorceress popped her knight out and they toppled to the large area rug bearing the Balamb Garden crest.

"Ow..." Rinoa reached back to rub her head slightly, wincing slightly. "When they said 'hardwood,' they really meant it..."

Squall waggled his head before looking down at his sorceress. "Rinoa..." When she blinked up at him, hand still on the back of her noggin, she saw his frown twitch into a smile (even though he'd tried to stop it – quite valiantly, she was sure). "...There goes my sternness," he mumbled. "And I had a scolding speech prepared, too."

One of Rinoa's thin, dark eyebrows arched upwards. "Oh? According to what directive?"

"Garden Code 493:5."

"Article four nine three, line five? I don't remember seeing it go beyond three hundred fifty..."

"Well there is," insisted Squall. "You just haven't seen it."

"Oh?"

Squall's smile widened fractionally. "Yeah. 493:5 states that Squall Leonhart will not be caught off-guard by Rinoa Heartilly more than her necessary allotment of ten times a day."

Rinoa half-smiled, rolling her eyes. "I haven't gone over ten today..."

"Yes, you have."

Her arms reached around his neck, hands clasping at his nape, and dangled loosely from there. "But I've barely seen you."

Squall briefly inclined his head to the side once. "I know. I'm sorry. But you still caught me off-guard. And you dropped one of my books."

"It's your own fault for gaping at that jar full of taffy and being so out of it." Rinoa stuck her tongue out at him.

Squall turned red up to the tips of his ears. "I...I was not _gaping_ at it. I was—"

"Admit it, Leonhart, you were staring at that candy, I know you were! You didn't hear a word I said." Rinoa pushed him off, feigning offense. "And here I was, missing you," she said, standing with her hands tucked behind her back and bending over at the waist slightly to admonish him. "And now you expect me to just take the fact you found _salt water taffy_ more interesting than me—"

Rinoa ceased talking abruptly as Squall's bare fingers touched her lips. She trembled slightly, wide-eyed and he smiled somewhat, warm.

"I'm a SeeD, Rinoa, and I'm not supposed to have weaknesses. However, as you may have noticed, all SeeDs do and the headmaster even said he doesn't want us to blindly follow orders, so I guess weakness serve a purpose as making us individuals. In my case..." He moved his other hand, also gloveless, to her hair – both gloves were stowed in the pocket of his pants. "I have a sweet tooth. I like pretty much any kind of candy and salt water taffy happens to be my favorite candy. I haven't had some in a while so I got a little sugar-crazy."

Rinoa gave a voiceless nod. They stared at each other for a long while and it was the flash of the laptop going to the screensaver that brought the young sorceress back to her senses. Her face felt hot and the way Squall was gazing at her – warm but mischievous – was not helping matter at all.

"S-so," she began shakily just as Squall lowered his hand from her mouth and set it to the curve of her hip, "if you had such a sweet tooth...why didn't you just ask me for some?"

Squall gave a half-shrug. "Figured you'd tease me. The others wouldn't let me live it down, especially...you know, I think they'd all torture me fairly equally."

With a laugh, somewhat disbelieving yet good-natured, Rinoa murmured, "Oh, Squall... Well, you can have some – as much as you want, okay? Just leave me some."

He seemed to consider this. "Hm..." he hummed. "Nah. I think I'll pass."

Rinoa stared at him, clearly bemused. "But, I thought you wanted the candy..."

"I _did_ want the candy but my sweet tooth has..." he gave a boyish smile, "shifted a little bit, if you will."

Squall reached over to the jar and unscrewed the lid with one hand, still keeping Rinoa in his grasp. Pulling out a piece of cherry taffy, he held it out to her, where the sorceress took it warily. Slowly, she put it in her mouth and chewed – her eyes on his.

_What is he up to...?_ she wondered briefly. Then, Squall dipped his head and kissed her firmly but tenderly. Rinoa was surprised – her knight wasn't usually so forward or so..._romantic_.

_Most people wouldn't call this romantic,_ she thought vaguely, scooting up closer to him, _but for Squall...this is. Might as well enjoy it._ But the kiss ended quicker than she hoped and Squall leaned back, a smirk on his handsome face.

"Hey now! You can't just end a kiss that quick!" pouted Rinoa, waggling a hand at him. Squall continued to smirk at her before chewing slowly. She stared at him in disbelief. "You...! You stole the taffy out of my mouth!"

"Yup," he agreed unabashedly. He munched some more before finally swallowing. "I was able to curb my sweet tooth for now by getting two sweets at one time."

Rinoa narrowed her eyes, though she was far from angry. "All that...for your taffy."

"Well," he began to slip his gloves back on, "I think you've developed a bit of a sweet tooth yourself now." He tilted his head to give her a chaste kiss. "Besides, it makes up for you slipping cough syrup into my mouth last month."


End file.
